The consummate leader cultivates the moral law, and strictly adheres to method and discipline; thus it is in his power to control success.

Amid the turmoil and tumult of battle, there may be seeming disorder and yet no real disorder at all.

Now a soldier's spirit is keenest in the morning; by noonday it has begun to flag; and in the evening, his mind is only on returning to camp.

When you are ignorant of the enemy but know yourself, your chances of winning or losing are equal.

Subtle and insubstantial, the expert leaves no trace; divinely mysterious, he is inaudible. Thus he is master of his enemy's fate.

If our soldiers are not overburdened with money, it is not because they have a distaste for riches; if their lives are not unduly long, it is not because they are disinclined to longevity.

The one who figures on victory at headquarters before even doing battle is the one who has the most strategic factors on his side.